Adjustable holder for coil-winding dies



Aug. 9, 1932. I s, w s N I 1,871,349 v ADJUSTABLE HOLDER FOR COILWINDING DIES Filed Dec. 27, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Z7 PIE 6 'E1E.6. Z7 m.'7. 25

'27 INVENTOR STE/v M/IDaTE/V I T w Y I ATTORNEY Ag. 9, 1932. a WADSTEN1,871,349

ADJUSTABLE HOLDER FOR COIL W INDING DIES 'Filed Dec. 27, 1927 2Sheets-Sheet 2 I T a 5 4 I film e5 W m r 6/ I G6 v 5 I 9 36 I 4614i 60 5g i I 6? I w l 4 45 62 /,//W/// 5511. FIE-HO. m.12.

INVENTOR STE/v Moe TEN ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 9, 1932 STEN WADSTEN, OFIBLOOMFIELD, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO W'ESTINGHOUSE LAMP COMPANY, ACORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA ADJUSTABLE HOLDER FOR COIL-WINDIN G DIESApplication filed December 27, 192?. SerialNo. 242,715;

The present invention relates to-an improvement in coil-winding machinessuch as shown and described in the patent to J. W.

Ekstedt, 1,670,499 granted May 22, 1928 andassigned to the same assigneeas is the present application.

In the above mentioned patent, a machine is shown for coiling finehair-like wire to helical form in the absence of a mandrel andparticularly for the production of such coiled wire to serve asfilaments for incandescent electric lamps. The machine shown comprisesmechanism for moving a wire through a given path when tangentiallyengaged by a pair of oppositely disposed driving rollers which drive thewire endwise into a cavity die from which the wire issues in the form ofa continuous helix. Means are also provided for cutting the helix intosections of proper lengths to constitute filaments for incandescentelectric lamps.

The die is so arranged that the cavity is positioned to-reccive the wirefrom the driving rollers, the bottom of the cavity beinginclined orgrooved so that the wire is bent into a succession of coils which'passover a lip or separator member at the edge of the die. The helix orsuccessive turns of the coil which issue from the die are consequentlyspaced a given distance apart, and a helix is, therefore, provit ed of acertain diameter and pitch depending uponthe dimensions of the spacermember and the radius of curvature of the:

effective surface ofthe cavity as well as the position of the die withrespect to the driving rollers.

In the manufacture ofrcoiled filamentary bodies which serve aselectrical resistance elements when used as lamp filaments,-it isessen-. tial to exerciseextreme accuracy in the formation or" the coils,since each filament or coiled section must be made in accordance withspecified dimensions so that each coiled section will have a lengthof:wire therein equal to the succeeding coiled section. Fur thermore,the diameter of the coil aswell as the spacing or pitch of the turns ofthe coil must be uniform.

The dimensions of the diameter and the proportions of the coiledsections vary for lamps of different Wattage, and the data relating tosuch dimensions and proportions are known as the rating so that a coiledsection for a givenrating must be made in accordance witha predeterminedset of dimensions. For example, a filament for a watt, 115 voltlamp mustcontain a length of'wire of 517 mm., it must have a coil diameter of.0108 inches and the coiled section must contain 398 turns per inch. Thediameter of the wire also varies in filaments of different wattage lamps.and the diameter of the wire of a coiled filament for a 60 watt lamp ispreferably .0018? inches.

It will be obvious that in order to produce a.

such as a diamond. A diamond die, although I having indefinite life, isdifficult to produce, and owing to variations in the properties of'adiamond, it is very often brittle to the extent that portions of thecoil-winding lip are broken off rendering the die inoperative for thepurpose intended.

7 As set' forth in the saidpatent, the coil Winding die may-beconstructed from hard-- ened steel, but inasmuch as the wire passingover the die results in excessive wear, it is necessary to replace thesteel die at shorter intervals than is necessary with a diamond die.Ordinarily the replacementof'one die for another would ofier aconsiderable disadvantage since when applying a die into position forthe winding of'a coiled filament it is necessary to adjust the die inseveral planes until the cavity is accurately located in such positionthat the diameter and pitch of the coil produced will be in accordancewith the data supplied for the rating of the particular lamp for whichthefilament is to be used.

When using a diamond die, the die remains in the machine for such a longperiod that the amount of labor and inconvenience involved in a changefrom one die to another is negligible. A steel die, although easier toproduce, must be changed at comparatively short intervals, and theadvantage given by the facility accompanying the production of the dieis lost by the time and labor involved in replacing the same.

7 An object of the invention is to provide a means for forming a dieadapted to cooperate with means for holding a die in a given coilwinding position.

Another object of the invention is to, provide a die having acoil-winding cavity disposed in a predetermined relation to the axis ofthe die.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be more fullyunderstood from the following description.

In practicing the present invention, I first employ what may be termed amaster steel female die blank and inone end thereof, a cavity is formedby means of any suitable high-speed rotary lapping wheel of the prop ersize. This master steel female blank is then hardened and drawn .toproper temper sionis obviously equal in dimensions tothe.

cavity of the female hob. The master male die being thus produced maythen be hardened and tempered. An unhardened die blank or rod may thenbe "forced against the end of the master male die until the dieblanktakesa depressionor cavity from the master male die, thus thecoil-windingcavity is formed in the dieblank and a coil-winding die isproduced which may then be hardened for use in a coil? winding machine.

The method of forming the dieblank is, however, utilized to make itpos-' sible toalways produce the cavity inproper position for acoil-winding operation. This is accomplished by providing means for 10eating a point or spot upon the die rod and in providing means in aholder of the coilwind-mg machine for engaging the said point or spotsothat each die rod will be held' in the coil-winding machine in aposition as deter-' mined during the formation of the cavity. By reasonofthis method, the first coil-wind ing die produced may be inserted intothe die holder of a machine andsecured'inth'e predetermined position.The die holder may then be adjusted until the die is-so positioned as toproduce a helix of the proper pitch and diameter. The coil-winding 'operatlon may then be continued until it is neces- Sary to substitute a newdie.

cavity in the .sions 18 and 19. The extension 19may a forcescrew20passing through a threaded aperture, and a retainer member 21 may beInasmuch as the next die produced is provided with a point orpredetermined spot to be engaged by means in the holder of thecoil-winding machine, the said die will take exactly the same positionas was occupied mined dimensions.

The invention will be more fully understood by reference 'to theaccompanying drawingsin which:

Fig. 1 shows a portion of a. female hob for producing a master male die;I

r Fig. 2 is. airend View. of the hob shown in Fig. 1; 1

Fig. 3 is a fixture employed for forcing a master male blank againstthe-hob to produce the master male die, and alsofor forcing the mastermale die against-the die blank to produce the coil-winding die;

Fig. 4 is a sideelevational' view of the master male die; 7

Fig.5 is an end view Fig; J

. Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view. of a portion ofthe fixture'shown inFig. 3;

, Fig. 7*shows a die in the'form of a rod of the die shown in one endthereof; 1

Fig. 8 is an end view of the die shown in Fig. 7 I

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary perspective view of a coil-winding machine andshows a die holder as employed for supporting the die;

Fig. 10 is a detailed view of the die holder partly in section; a

Fig. 11 is a view of one end of the die holder shown in Fig. 10 ;and

having the die. cavity properly disposed at Fig. 12is a view of theopposite end of the die holder shown in Fig. 10. In practicing thepresent'invention, a hob 10 may be provided of any suitable material,preferably of steel which may be hardened and tempered to the properdegree. The hobmay be provided'with a tapered end 11 terminating in asurface 12' and any suitable high-speed rotary lapping wheel 13may beemployed to produce 'a' slot 14:, in the surface 12. "The lapping wheel13 may be of such dimension as to produce the cavity 14 of the properdepth length and width.

The female hob thus produced, may be hardened to serve for the making ofa male hob or matrix 15. This is accomplished by providing a fixture 16comprising a. member 17 formed to provide abutments or extenhaveprovided to receive ends of the hob 10 and a rod 22 from which the malehob is to be produced. The retainer member- 21 may have a flattenedlower portion 23 for disposition on a surface 24 between the extensions18 and 19 and guide members 25 may be provided to hold the retainermember from lateral movement. When the rod 22 and the female hob 10 aredisposed in the retainer member, the set force screw 20 may be actuatedto thrust the ends of the said hob and rod together, thus causing themetal of the rod 22 to flow into the cavity in the female hob, therebyproducing a projection 26 which has the same dimensions as the interiorwall of the cavity in the female hob. The male hob thus produced maythen be hardened and used to produce a coil-winding cavity 27 in a dierod 28 in the same manner as described for producing the male hob.

For the purpose of obtaining an accurate position of the cavity in eachdie rod pro duced, the die rods as well as the hob are provided withflattened portions 29 and 30 respectively, and set-screws 31 and 32 areprovided to engage the flattened portions and thus hold the die rod andhob in proper relation during the formation of'the cavity. Theset-screws do not, however, hold the hob and die rod againstlongitudinal movement for the formation of the cavity.

Furthermore, the die blank is provided with a four-sided taper as shownin Figs. 7 and 8 and the cavity 27 is so disposed as to be adjacent toone side of the end of the rod, thereby'permitting the edge 27 of thecavity to serve as a coil separating lip. It is obvious that ifdesirable, the cavity may be formed in any position on the end of theblank and the side of the blank ground down to provide a coilseparating'lip. By means of the present method, the cavity may be madein exactly the same position on each die produced.

In addition to the operation of forming the cavity in the die rod, theretainer member 21 of the fixture 16 is provided with an aperture 33 sothat after the cavity has been formed in the die rod the hob and die.rod may remain in fixed relation and a drill or other tool may beinserted through the aperture 33 to spot the die rod, formingadepression 34 to receive the end of a set-screw when the die rod isplaced in a holder of a coil-winding machine, thus making it possible toaccurately position each die rod in a manner to be presently described.

The coil-winding mechanism selected for use in connection with the abovedescribed apparatus is substantially the same as that disclosed in theabove-mentioned patent, only such portion of the mechanism being shownas to clearly illustrate the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 9 the coil-winding mecha.

nism may comprise a pair of wire driving rollers 35 and 36, the roller35 being mounted in an oscillatory bearing 37' pivoted at 38. The saidroller 35 is provided witha shaft extending through a bearing 39.Whenthe roller 35 is disposed in operative relation to the roller 36,both rollers frictionally engage a wire 40 and the shaft of the roller35 is so arranged as to be connected with mechanism for rotating theroller. The bottom roller 36 is provided with a shaft to efiect itsrotation.

at 43to a spindle 44, the said spindle being disposed in a bearing 45provided on-the body of the coil-winding machine. By reason or" thepivot 43 and the spindle 44, it is pos sible to move the casing 42 in avertical and horizontal plane so as to adjustthe' die with relation tothe wire driving rollers. -Inasmuch as the die 28 is supported by theholder, an adjustment of the latter causes an adjustment of the die.

tis essential, however, to provide a more accurate adjustment of thedie, and for this purpose a sleeve 45 is fitted to a suitable bore 46 inthe casing. The sleeve 45 is provided with a longitudinalpassage 47 toreceive the die or die rod 28 and may be termed a die sleeve or collar.A setcrew 48 is provided to engage the notch or depression 34 in the dierod to hold the same in a predeterminedrelation to the sleeve. Anadjustment of the die rod about its longitudinal axis may be obtained bya rotary movement of the sleeve 45. For this purpose, the sleeve isprovided with a yoke 49 having a split head 50 and a clamping screw 51may be provided to secure the yoke to the sleeve 45. Arms 52 and 53 offurther adjustment of the die rod'is accomplished by providing aset-screw 57 which extends through a threaded aperture in the yoke 49and abuts against the casing 42. Thus bya manipulation of the set-screw57,

the sleeve and consequently the die may be moved toward or away from thewire driving rollers 35 and-36. For the purpose of clamps ing the sleevein its final position, the casing 42 is split at 58 and a clamping screw59 is provided.

" ment elements, the position of the holder 41 j ustment of the holder41 and the said slide member may be screwed in position by setscrew 64.For the purpose of adjusting the control arm to regulate the position ofthe holder 41, set-screws 65, 66, 67 and 68 are provided. Set-screws 65and 66 engage with the end 60 of the control arm to raise or lift thecontrol arm and adjust the holder 41 vertically about the pivot 48. Theset-screws 67 and 68 engage withopposite sides of'the end 60 of thecontrol arm 54 to adjust theholder 41 laterally or in a horizontalplane, which adjustment is possible by reason of the spin dle 44 journaled in the bearing 45.

From the foregoing,it will be evident that coil-winding dies may beproduced in a simple and accurate manner by first making the male hob15. As shown in Fig. 6, when the die rod is in position andan aperturehas been formed in the end of the die rod 28 by reason of the hob 15,the die rod'may be spotted through the aperture 33. The distance betweenthe end of the die rod and the center of the'aperture '33whichisindicated by a letter X, may be of any selected dimension; havingonce been determined,however, this dimension is maintained. The die rod,

after being spotted to produce the depression 34, is then applied to thesleeve 45 of the holder 41 and the set-screw 48 is screwed downwardlyuntil the end of the screw'enters the depression 34, thus determiningthe dimension between the center of the depression and the end of thedie rod, which dimension is indicated in Fig; by the letter Y.

After the die has been positioned in the holder, the holder is adjustedto proper relation with the driving rollers and 36, and the wire is thenforced into the die from which it issues in a series. of successivecoils to produce a helix.

The formation of the helix asabove mentioned, must be extremely accurateas to pitch and diameter so that if a coil isto be made for use in agiven watt lamp certain rating data are supplied and the coiled wiremustbe made to comply with the dimensions which are predetermined. In ordertoea-ccomplish By reason of the above-mentioned adjusts this, it is' notonly necessary to provide a. die with a spacing lip, but to so adjustthe die with relation to the path of movement of the wire that the exactdiameter of the helix will be obtained and the exact pitch or spacingbetween the successive coils will be obtained. r

This operation isimportant and is clearly described in Patent Number1,795,767 issued March 10, 1931, to John W. Ekstedt. r After the holderhas been adjusted so that the die willlie in its proper relation to thewire-driving rollers and a coil of the proper proportions and dimensionsis produced, the die may remain until such a number of coils have beenproduced as to cause a wear upon the die. A die'ma-y then be produced bythe method as above described, and it is not necessary to make anyfurther adjustments with respect to the holder but the new die may beapplied ,tothe holder and by reason of the predetermined spot ordepression 34, the said die may be quickly and accurately positioned inexactly the right relation to the path of movement of the, wire or thewire-driving rollers to produce a helix of exactly the same dimpnsionsas produced by the die previously usec w A die'produced by the presentapparatus has the advantage of being more durable. than "one producedbyinerely cutting away the material to produce the cavity. twill beevident that by reason of the present device, the material whichoccupied the space of the cavity-is-forced away or compressed so thatthe surface or wall of the cavityis of greater density than thesurrounding metal and more resistant to wear.

From the foregoing, it will be evident that the present apparatus makesit possibleto utilize a coil-winding die which need only be of amaterial suflic-iently hard to produce a reasonable number. of lampfilaments, since ,owing-to the present method, no material loss of timeor inconvenience by the renewal of the die is encountered.

The present invention, therefore,-eliminates the necessity of providinga die of a material such as a diamond which requires expensive labor byskilled workmen for its production as well as a relatively long timeinterval-for its its production; The present apparatus,re-, duces thecost of manufacture offine coiled filamentary bodies by avoiding the useof an expensive tool subject to breakage, and fur- 1- thermore, providesa machine, in which a die may be made and applied after the firstinstallation without any special or usual skill on the part of anoperator. Althougha preferred apparatus is'shown and described herein,it is to. be understood that modifications may be made therein withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in theappended claims.

embodiment of the 2.1.

What is claimed is:

1. In a coil-winding machine including a die and wire-driving means formoving a wire into said die, the combination with a die holder, a sleevefor supporting a die, and means for adjusting said sleeve relative tosaid holder to position said die in a given relation to said wiredriving means.

2. In a coil-winding machine including a die and wire-driving means formoving a wire into said die, the combination with a die holder, a sleevefor supporting a die, and means for reciprocating said sleeve along itslongitudinal axis and for rotating said sleeve about said axis.

3. In a coil-winding machine including a die and wire-driving means formoving a wire into said die, the combination with a die holder, a sleevefor supporting a die, means for reciprocating said sleeve along itslongitudinal axis, and means for rotating said sleeve about said axisand means for adjusting said holder.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 22nd dayof December,

STEN WADSTEN.

